Welcome here and thanks for introducing yourself. I agree with freddo given the fact that all religions fail to be 100% correct regarding doctrine and prophecy, but after reading your story, a few things come to my mind. Regarding both JW and LDS, you might find it useful to check out some experiences of long time member slimboyfat. Just search and read. Also, the recently posted topic "Who has the authority to decern [sic] what the bible really teaches" had some interesting comments about personal interpretation. Enjoy the forum!
redpilltwice
JoinedPosts by redpilltwice
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Introduction
by robrog8999 inhello all.... i am new here so i figured i'd make a quick post introducing myself and giving a brief intro as to who i am and what i'm here for... as well as to hopefully meet others.. so, i made a profile and in it i gave a pretty detailed explanation as to my intent here and exactly why i decided to participate in the boards.
in case you don't read it, i'll give a brief summary.
the name is robert.
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Salvation Army Apology Video Regards to ARC
by LevelThePlayingField inif only the gb did this!
notice how in this 2 minute video he says that he says he "accepts that abuse has happened" and offers an "unreserved apology" and "will not defend this failure on our part".
he said he is personally available to meet with survivors and to offer a personal apology.
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redpilltwice
He said he is personally available to meet with survivors and to offer a personal apology.
Oh the contrast!
From http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/12-things-we-learned-from-geoffrey-jacksons-testimony-at-the-royal-commission :
Another clue that Jackson is less than preoccupied with concern for the welfare of sex abuse victims can be found in his ignorance of the earlier testimony of BCG.
When asked by BCG’s lawyer whether he’d read her client’s evidence, Jackson replied: “I haven’t, I’m sorry. The reason I came here [to Australia] was to care for my ailing father, and that has taken a lot of my time. Plus, I wasn’t aware of the fact that I would be called before the Commission.”
At first glance this may sound like a reasonable excuse, but a disparity soon emerges when you consider the multiple occasions on which Jackson referred to the previous testimony of his own Watchtower representatives – something he somehow HAD found the time to brush up on despite caring for his father (bold is mine)…
- “But if I could mention, some of the reports that you have considered are from 25 years ago, and if I understand correctly, from what little I heard of the Commission in the last few days, Mr Spinks very accurately described that there has been more of an awareness of Jehovah’s Witnesses to make sure that any victim who has been a victim of a horrible crime is not required to actually go before three men.”
- “If I understand your question correctly, from what I have heard from Mr Spinks’ testimony, that is not something that we require now.”
- “Thank you for the opportunity to explain this. I think very clearly Mr Toole pointed out that if the Australian Government, in all the States, was to make mandatory reporting, it would make it so much easier for us.”
- “Could I explain, Mr Stewart, that ‐ you see, I think already under testimony some of Jehovah’s Witnesses have explained that the two‐witnesses needed can be, in some cases, the circumstances.”
Therefore, Jackson HAD taken time out to research previous evidence in the commission. He was just very selective about whose evidence he listened to, and seemingly had a preference for brushing up on what Watchtower representatives had to say rather than child abuse victims.
Another telling moment came when BCG’s clearly-exasperated lawyer expressed her dismay at Monica Applewhite’s evidence as paid for by Watchtower, which seems to have been roundly dismissed as one-sided and non-credible by the Commission.
“It is really disheartening for the survivors that evidence from people such as Dr Applewhite, without any reference whatsoever to the victims ‘experience, suggests to them that the reason for engaging experts is… more to do with the reputation of the Jehovah’s Witnesses than any real attempt to get to a deep understanding of their experience.”
In response to what was, again, more of an appeal to his humanity, Jackson replied…
“I certainly hope that is not the case, and that certainly was not the intent of it. So please, be assured that we are interested in the individuals such as the client that you are representing. And may I take this opportunity, I don’t know your client, but please, could you convey an expression of my love and concern and reassure her that obviously she has had an opportunity to speak about how she feels, and hopefully this will help the policies and procedures to improve.”
So, not only had Jackson failed to find time to research the testimony of victims of child abuse within his organization, despite somehow finding time to listen to the testimony of Watchtower representatives Rodney Spinks and Vincent Toole. Jackson had also thrown away an opportunity to show compassion by admitting that the deployment of “expert for hire” Monica Applewhite was in poor taste from the point of view of the victims. And to add insult to injury, he was now issuing instructions to BCG’s lawyer to act as a go-between with her client.
My response, had I been on the receiving end of this request, would have been: “I take instructions from BCG – not you, Mr Jackson. I’m sure if you really care about BCG and her situation, you will find the time and means to convey that message to her yourself in person.”
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The Org is Growing???? Really???????
by The Searcher inwatchtower january 2017 - par.
15 - "we live in exciting times.
the earthly part of jehovah’s organization is growing in many ways, but growth necessitates change.".
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redpilltwice
Growth, decline...it doesn't matter as long as JW's think:
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What kind of cheese do you like?
by Iamallcool ini went to www.sensibus.com and they have 160 different kinds of cheese.
i just do not know which cheese i want to order.
any suggestions?
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redpilltwice
Almost any Dutch cheese, such as Old Amsterdam, Goudse, Edammer but also French Brie and Danish Blue.
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dealing with religion after leaving the witnesses
by joker ini’ve noticed many people posting on this site seem to have completely given up on religion/spirituality.. but some have attended services at another religion, or just follow their own heart regarding what to believe.. my question is how does anyone deal after leaving with all of the witness crap that we believed about babylon the great, the great harlot, spiritual prostitute, etc., etc.
i’m finding out that i seem to have built myself a pretty solid wall regarding religion.. some people can just chuck all beliefs into one basket saying that they are all basically garbage,,, and that is ok, no problem i respect that.. but for myself there is a certain part of my personality that needs a spiritual belief not like the witnesses in any way, but something to meditate on, and contemplate.. being a witness taught me how bad it is to actually think of god in any other way besides what the jw’s believe.
and now when i attend any other service, the dark jw side seems to pop out and seriously makes me believe that everything i see/do/say is wrong.
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redpilltwice
Organised religion cannot be trusted. I'm absolutely no buddhist, but I seek spirituality in the beauty of nature and how the universe mesmerizes us. I'm still open to practical "christian" principles that work for me, but I don't push them to extremes. I cannot prove/disprove any divine intervention in the past, there are no convincing clues that we are living in the last days, or for an afterlife for the future. I await the future of science and knowledge with room for errors. I've replaced my excitement about bible prophecy with TTATT and our attempt to put man on Mars! In a different, non-jw way, the future stills looks interesting to me!
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Chinese Communist Party to commence nationwide crackdown on Christianity including Jehovah's Witnesses
by jwleaks in8 october 2016. china's governing communist party is set to launch a nationwide crackdown on the christian church.. by matthew carney - abc.
the communist party has just enacted much tougher laws that criminalise christians if they do not pledge loyalty to the state.. chinese president xi jinping has warned that all religions now have to become "chinese" and the new laws will attempt to bring churchgoers and their leaders under party control.. the new laws will put the state firmly in charge, giving the communist party the ability to hire and fire church leaders and change religious doctrine to make it more chinese.... that means churchgoers will have to pledge loyalty to the communist party first.. there is good reason to be afraid.
chinese authorities have already started the crackdown in the christian heartland in the southern province of zhejiang.. it's been extensive and brutal.
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redpilltwice
Saename, if you are not familiar with the Mexico/ Malawi scandal yet... welcome to TTATT! That story is gruesome to read and a real eye-opener. You will be shocked about the blood on the hands of the WT.
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Hello - New Member
by NotAnointed ini just wanted to intoroduce myself.
i have been lurking for some time and finally decided to register and hopefully contribute to this great forum.. i am in my mid 30s and have never been in the truth.
my wife became a jw several years ago and since she is a (mostly) stay at home mom my two boys are also jws.
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redpilltwice
Welcome to the forum...and my advice... don't be sad about the non-believers. The forum is for everyone. It makes a healthy mix of different opinions and I think they are sincere and good people and hey... God is love and Jesus knows their heart, right?
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An ANALYSIS of Watch Tower of Britain’s last (January 2013) Child Safeguarding Policy by Barbara Anderson
by AndersonsInfo inan analysis of watch tower of britain’s last (january 2013) child safeguarding policy by barbara anderson.
last year, i was asked to review watch tower of britain’s child safeguarding policy and its implementation.
what i discovered was depressing and disappointing especially because the policy contained just a single statement (#18) directing elder/trustees on how to protect children in their congregations from avoidable harm - they were to restrict a repentant abuser “…from being alone in the company of children.” the policy did not explain what procedures to follow to assure that abusers would obey that rule.
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redpilltwice
Thanks for the effort Barbara. Unbelievable that they still won't see how their "theocratical" policies support the company, but not the victims. Stubborn and injust... it really is time to get the whip!
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CO visit... Circuit is not growing at all, he said during midweek meeting
by StarTrekAngel inso that was a "shocker".
i was not able to attend the meeting.
i had a more important one with my other apostate friends in the area.
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redpilltwice
Thank you for sharing this encouraging news and your wife for taking notes. FOG tactics once again but reality will come down hard on this cult.
Blondie...lol.
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What steps did you take to free yourself from the cult? mentally or physically?
by HereIgo infirst i ignored all of the elders phone calls to send my recommendation letter to my new congregation, truth is i had already started my fade and moved across town and didn't have a new congregation.
i deleted all jw friends on facebook.
i also threw away all of my public talks recorded on cd, all literature, even my book bag and my bible.
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redpilltwice
I fully found TTATT after years of following Candace Conti and discovering jwfacts, ad1914 and jwsurvey during the summer of 2015. Talked to the wife and kids and they got it. Thank god no other family in. Two meetings with elders regarding my doubts, where we respectfully disagreed, just two sunday meetings, field service from auxillary pioneer in september to zero hours in five months and voila...mission completed. No jc, just some shunning here and there and at most a handfull of witnesses that still see and mail me now and then but hey...I'm not complaining 😆.
So, physically out 100%. Mentally 99% but still angry and frustrated about the waisted years. Not sure how much anti-Jw activism it's all worth at the risk of being disfellowshipped after all. A fade under the radar gives subtle opportunities to reach some witnesses that are not completely brain dead, but... all at the right place at the right time. In general, we have reached the state that the internet, understanding English and some courage should be enough to get someone out of the Borg, at least mentally.